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Blah Time

01.13.2013 by Ray Niekamp // 5 Comments

As noted in the last post, I’ve been dialing back on my riding. Compared to last January, when I rode over 400 miles, I’ll be lucky to get in 250 this month. However, that’s not all bad. Riding easier will give me a chance to recharge my batteries, and be better ready to go when the rides I really want to do pop up in the spring.

Problem is, I’ve hit one of those periodic bumps in the road. Not only will I ride easier, but it appears I might have a little trouble riding at all.

This morning saw a cold front sweeping through Central Texas. It dipped into the upper 30s overnight, and when I got up, it had barely reached 40 degrees (4C). I can ride at 40, but along with the temperature, a gusty wind was shaking the trees. Our club ride was scheduled for 8 a.m., but I really didn’t feel motivated to ride.

I decided to pass on the club ride, and settled down in my easy chair with the morning paper and some breakfast. I could wait it out until later, and maybe go when it got a little bit nicer.

I had plenty to keep me busy. The spring semester at my university starts Monday, and I still had to put some finishing touches on one of the classes I’m teaching. After breakfast, I parked myself in the home office and started working on that.

Before long, it was after noon. Lunch time. I had a sandwich and a pear, and sat down to watch some playoff football. Then my wife told me I had to visit the supermarket, or there would be nothing to eat tonite.

I wrestled my cart through the crowded aisles, and finally was able to check out. It turned out I only forgot to get one item — pretty good. But by now, it was after 3 p.m. I sat down at the computer for some more class prep.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Noob decided conditions were just right for biking. She got suited up, and took off without me. I let her go.

So that was my exciting day. I consider Sunday to be my long mileage day of the week, and today I racked up a big goose egg.

But somehow, as surprised as I am about this event, it’s not bothering me. I’ll ride again during the week, maybe more than once, and that will make up for today’s miss. But what does bother me is when I have a “don’t care” attitude toward biking. Here’s hoping I can snap out of that sooner rather than later.

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Categories // Mental, Odds 'n ends

Is There a Cyclist’s High?

07.24.2012 by Ray Niekamp // 13 Comments

I went for a ride this afternoon with my friend John T. We agreed to meet at Austin’s Veloway for some slow laps. The ride would be a repeat of one we’d done a few weeks before, with the difference that John has really come back from his cycling layoff and has made rapid progress in endurance and speed.

Neither of us planned to push the pace. He’d just come off a 50-mile ride over the weekend, so was looking for some recovery. I’ve been pushing lately, and needed a break from that. We fell into a comfortable tempo, and chatted about all sorts of things — few of which had to do with biking — as we cruised the three-mile circuit.

But at one point, about halfway through our ride, I gave a start.

“You know,” I said to John, “I ride here a lot. I’m probably familiar not just with every turn of the track, but with every crack in the surface. But today, I have a weird feeling. All the curves and turns look alike. I couldn’t tell you where we’ve been or where we were at a given time.”

I looked at my surroundings, and knew instantly that we were on the backside of the Veloway, approaching a nice straightaway that invites the cyclist to crank up the speed. But before my fresh realization, I hadn’t been aware of where I was. I was caught up in the conversation and the ride.

I glanced at my bike computer. It said we were averaging 14.7 mph.

“Wow,” said John, “that’s pretty good.”

We were almost up to the low 15s that I like to do when I’m out alone. John’s been averaging a little less than that on his rides.

“I’ll tell you what it is,” I said. “It’s the biker’s high.”

Back when I used to run (okay, jog) I remembered experiencing the elusive runner’s high once or twice. Runners love to talk about it, probably because it happens so rarely. Marathoner and former Runner’s World editor Amby Burfoot has computed that he’s had a runner’s high during just .00185 percent of his runs. In fact, it happens so seldom that some scientific researchers have been unable to account for a runner’s high in their data, and have written papers debunking the idea.

The runner’s high is usually described as a sense of euphoria, where the activity one is pursuing happens without effort. That’s what I went through this afternoon. We weren’t burning up the track, but we were pedaling at a good clip. Burfoot says that to experience a runner’s high, you must stress yourself by running a little slower — but not much slower — than your 10K race pace. That produces a fatty acid called anandamide, which can cross the blood-brain barrier and cause the euphoria runners seek. Anandamide is also called “the brain’s marijuana,” because of its natural high effect. We must have been in that zone. (By the way, that “endorphin rush” people cite during or after workouts is likely something else, because endorphins are too large to cross the blood-brain barrier.)

As I said, it didn’t last long. I could carry on a conversation with John, and maybe it’s because I was paying more attention to what we were saying than where we were going that I had a sense of being disconnected from my riding. But then I snapped out of it. That’s okay. It was a great feeling — one I’ve never had before on a bike. I hope to experience it again.

Have you ever had “biker’s high?” Was it similar to mine, or something completely different?

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Categories // Mental Tags // cyclist's high

The Biking Blahs

06.19.2012 by Ray Niekamp // 6 Comments

I suppose it happens to all of us. There are days you get on the bike, and just aren’t motivated. In my case, that’s been the story for the last few rides.

I’m not sure what’s triggered this round of blahs. I seem to get them every year, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise. Friday after work, I did my usual 20-miler through the neighborhood. I know the hot weather got me there. It was 98 degrees (37C), and I didn’t want to push it, because I knew I’d be out Saturday morning.

But Saturday morning’s ride, for almost 28 miles, didn’t go much better. I kept pedaling, but had no oomph. Toward the end of the ride, my chain started skipping. I didn’t bother about it (bad sign).

On Sunday’s club ride, the group was heading out to Fitzhugh Road, usually a favorite of mine. They opted to tack on some extra distance, and bring the Fitzhugh total to the mid 50s. The usual turnaround spot gives 46 miles. I and the other B riders turn around earlier, for a 32-miler. But the rolling hills on Fitzhugh make it a tough 32.

Three miles into the ride, going up a nice hill in a semi-rural residential area, my chain started skipping again. But this time it was so bad, I could barely make it to the top. I stopped to check it out. Turning the barrel adjuster on the rear derailleur in all the way helped. At least, I could shift while putting power to the pedals and have no chain skip. I started off in pursuit of the group.

But by now, they were so far ahead of me, they weren’t to be seen. I decided to do the 32-mile route on my own.

It was an anticlimax. I had no one else to feed off, so my average speed was down. I passed several clubbers halfway along Fitzhugh Road, where they were watching one of their compadres fix a flat. Ten minutes later, they caught and passed me, and sailed on ahead. That was demoralizing.

Back at Starbuck’s, I enjoyed a smoothie while I waited for some of the group to show up. No one did. The longer route today meant they would be out on a road longer than usual. I headed home.

Today it was the strong southeast wind that got me. At one point, descending an easy hill at about 30 mph, a crosswind gust hit me and nearly knocked me off the bike. That got my attention, but made me cautious for the rest of the ride. My average speed for several days of riding is in the low 14s, which is okay, but not the mid-15s that I’ve been doing lately.

Hm. Have I been pushing too hard to be averaging in the 15s? That’s not an extraordinary speed. In fact, it used to be my old average. I can’t believe it’s a case of over training, since I ride only four days a week, so I’ve got three rest days. Could be lack of sleep, I suppose. I go to bed around midnight, and I’m up at 6 a.m. But I’ve always kept those hours, and seem to get along fine on six hours of sleep.

How about you? Do the biking blahs get you from time to time? If so, what do you do about them? If my past is any indication, I’ll snap out of the blahs in a few more days. But in the meantime, biking has lost its attraction for me.

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Categories // Mental, Odds 'n ends Tags // funk

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